Why I Hate Colder Climates

[kombat]

For me, a big part of it is the lack of sunlight. The days are so short in the dead of winter. It's dark when I leave to go to w*rok, it's dark when I come home... it's depressing. Add to the fact that you're virtually trapped indoors all the time as its so punishingly cold outside, and I long for the day when I never have to live through another miserable winter.

[steelyman]

Quote:

Originally Posted by kombat For me, a big part of it is the lack of sunlight. The days are so short in the dead of winter. It's dark when I leave to go to w*rok, it's dark when I come home... it's depressing. Add to the fact that you're virtually trapped indoors all the time as its so punishingly cold outside, and I long for the day when I never have to live through another miserable winter.

One item some people find helpful are light boxes that can be used during the winter. You can find some nice compact models (e.g. Philips) on Amazon.

[freebird5825]

Quote:

Originally Posted by kombat For me, a big part of it is the lack of sunlight. The days are so short in the dead of winter. It's dark when I leave to go to w*rok, it's dark when I come home... it's depressing. Add to the fact that you're virtually trapped indoors all the time as its so punishingly cold outside, and I long for the day when I never have to live through another miserable winter.

Did we w*rk in the same place?

I hung a huge watercolor picture of an open hayfield with autumn colors in my cubicle. I referred to it as my "window". I w*rked in a windowless building, with the only light being available at the doors. It was weird to go through a day and not see any natural light except during lunch. No matter how much snow was piled on my car, I went out for lunch daily.
I also saved and framed some pictures from scenic calendars, mostly waterfalls and shore scenes. It really helped to have something nice to look at in an environment that was otherwise devoid of beauty or color.
Now that I'm FIREd, I go outside to shovel snow or throw snowballs for my dogs on any day without severe wind chill. If stuck indoors, I do projects to keep my mind off the nasty weather outside.
I invested in some grow lights and a shelf unit so I can grow green things indoors during the winter. I keep geraniums going for some flowers. I move them to my dining room table and living room when they bloom.
It all helps.

[yabking]

Quote:

Originally Posted by kombat For me, a big part of it is the lack of sunlight. The days are so short in the dead of winter. It's dark when I leave to go to w*rok, it's dark when I come home... it's depressing. Add to the fact that you're virtually trapped indoors all the time as its so punishingly cold outside, and I long for the day when I never have to live through another miserable winter.

I'm surprised that more people haven't mentioned this. For us, DW especially, it is not so much the show or ice or cold, but the short winter days that come with colder climates. For some people, DW is one of them, this can be nearly debilitating.

Starting in late October her mood gets more and more somber. By early December she is literally counting the days until the winter solstice (Dec. 21). Once the days begin to get longer there is still about a 2 month lag before she starts to feel like herself again. So, 4-5 months of the year can be pretty rough for her -- seems to be getting worse as we get older.

The light box helps some but we mostly end up taking all our vacation during that period to sunny places, spreading it out from early December to late February.

[ShokWaveRider]

It is not just light and short days. We lived in Calgary Alberta Canada for many years and enjoyed over 300 days of sunshine annually. Some short sunny days and a lot of long ones. I never remember complaining about overcast gloomy days as the majority were not like that. While this is good when living in a place because one HAS to (For work Etc. or whatever reason one HAS to be some place for an extended period) as opposed to because one WANTS to be there. (BTW that makes a big difference)

What I do remember is the COLD (And I mean Bitter COLD) for long periods of time Chinnooks or no Chinnooks. That is monotonous and tedious in itself. Good for ICE fishing perhaps but that wears thin after a while (No Pun intended). So we left for warmer climes, leaving family, as the benefits far outweighed the negatives (for us).

NOW what we are struggling with is deciding on a final retirement location. Luckily we agree on the requirements. We live in FLA which is pretty much sunny most of the time, but suffer with the opposite, tedious heat, humidity and bugs in the summer which is long. The Winters are a dream though. So the big question I think is one has to choose their poison. Maybe we really never find the perfect place being a compromize between climate, cost of living and crowds or whatever one's own personal likes and dislikes are. We are never happy .

The current train of thought is Vancouver Island in the Nanaimo region. But from what I heard it is gloomy in the winter. Still researching but will really need to go for a while and rent perhaps.

So the search goes on.

[Grizz]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Frugalityisthenewblack I hate the cold..scraping ice off the windshield every morning before work for many months of the year....I love Canada but I will be a snowbird as soon as i cn!!

Amen, +1

[Free To Canoe]

Quote:

Originally Posted by kombat For me, a big part of it is the lack of sunlight. The days are so short in the dead of winter. It's dark when I leave to go to w*rok, it's dark when I come home... it's depressing. Add to the fact that you're virtually trapped indoors all the time as its so punishingly cold outside, and I long for the day when I never have to live through another miserable winter.

I have lived in both climates. Now that I am back in four seasons I realize that I am restricted indoors during the short sunlight days and fully enjoy the longest days in temperate weather while those in "warmer" climates are trapped inside with their AC.

[audreyh1]

We're not trapped inside with our ACs all day by any means. We have the early mornings to enjoy, and lovely long evenings. It's only during the middle of the day you don't want to be outside in the sun, and that doesn't mean you can't drive somewhere and enjoy restaurants, shopping, etc. Lots of people go to the pool. If it's breezy, it's not bad in the shade even in the hotter hours. I've often grilled outside in the late morning while I have shade in my courtyard - no big deal.

I just don't get why people think we never go outside during the summer in the south. By no means are we trapped indoors in AC 24/7.

[EllisWyatt]

Lived three years in South Dakota (reminds me of the old vaudeville joke -"I spent a month in Buffalo last week"). My last year there had 120 consecutive days below freezing. 30 consecutive days it went below zero.

What I don't miss: Having to plug in your car at night so it would start. Nightfall at 4pm. Day break at 9 am. Shoveling snow. Having to carry survival gear (blankets, candles, etc.) so if you stuck ina ditch you won't die. Bare hands getting stuck to door handles. Ground blizzards with zero visiblity (happens even when it's not snowing - just the wind blowing the stuff around). No bikinis from September through May (okay, I just threw that one in for fun).

When we left, I made a pact with God that I would never complain about being too hot if I never was so cold again - and I never have, even in the middle of the Rub al Khali desert.

[Notmuchlonger]

I don't like pants.

[Meadbh]

Quote:

Originally Posted by EllisWyatt My last year there had 120 consecutive days below freezing. 30 consecutive days it went below zero.

There's a difference?
Oh right, not Centigrade.....

[Kroeran]

where is the snowbird discussion in these here parts?

from Canada, it is not uncommon to sell the house in town, live at the cottage during the summer, and go to Florida for the winter.

Personally, I would just move to SW Florida, but the wife cannot get her head around switching to American health care.

I find heat can be uncomfortable, but never depressing. I find 90% of my (now retired one month) day emotionally is tied to blue skies and temps above about 65F.

[travelover]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Meadbh ..........Oh right, not Centigrade.....

Oh, "C" stand for Centigrade.

I always thought it stood for Canadian.

[LeavingOhio]

I HATE winter with a passion which is why my username here is "LeavingOhio". The lack of sunlight is a big part of it, but it's also just the cold. In most average homes, you can crank up the heat, but it's not on all the time, and you can (and I do) still get cold inside...hard to keep feet warm even with thick socks. Unless I wear long johns (which i don't want to do), my legs definitely get cold. The snow shoveling is bad, the driving is bad. I agree with some of the others who say they would rather be too hot than too cold. If I'm HOT, I can go to the pool or take a cold shower or sit in the AC, and that does it for me. When I'm cold, it's VERY difficult to feel comfortable...the heat doesn't do as good a job as the AC, a hot shower loses it's effectiveness very quickly (and the tub might be cold anyway). I can not wait to move away from Ohio in just 14 more years...maybe fewer depending on where the kids end up.

I'm not overly fond of yard work though, so I may have to have a desert landscape...this points me to New Mexico or Arizona or Nevada as possible retirement spots. Winter weather is just awful. I liked playing in the snow as a kid, but even then, I much preferred summer and warmer weather.

[kcowan]

Quote:

Originally Posted by travelover Oh, "C" stand for Centigrade. I always thought it stood for Canadian.

It might have to stand for every country in the world except the USA, Belize and miscellaneous. Actually C is for Celsius.

[travelover]

Quote:

Originally Posted by kcowan It might have to stand for every country in the world except the USA, Belize and miscellaneous. Actually C is for Celsius.

Maybe we can all just compromise and go to the Kelvin scale.

[EllisWyatt]

Hmmm..... I think that would still be "C", as in the "Calvin Scale"......

[EllisWyatt]

I've had the pleasure (?) of experiencing a range of temperatures from -38F (-38C) in South Dakota to 120F(50C) in Saudi. Both are brutal, but at least with the heat you can survive with a bit of shade and lots of water. In the cold, major concern was frostbite, which is hard to completely protect yourself from.

I'll still take the heat, thank you......

[Bruce]

More people in the world die from cold than heat. And unless you like winter sports, it has been shown to be unhealthy to sit around the house not getting enough exercise...people have a tendency to be more active in the warmer months...

[ls99]

Quote:

Originally Posted by travelover Maybe we can all just compromise and go to the Kelvin scale.

0 Kelvin, absolutely kool!